The Musical of Musicals (The Musical)

📍 Phoenix Arts Club

🗓️ 21st May 2025

🎟️ PR Invite

This 90-minute musical parody follows a struggling theatre group who can’t pay their rent. To convince their landlord they can attract audiences, they pitch five different musicals telling the same story — each styled after a different iconic composer: Rodgers & Hammerstein, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Jerry Herman, Stephen Sondheim, and Kander & Ebb.

The characters remain the same throughout the show— June (Caroline Featherstone), an ingenue with rent due; her chaotic landlord Jitter (Renan Teodoro); hero Billy (Joseph Dennington), advice-giving Abby (Jennifer Harrachy) and the theatre landlord (Oscar Carson).

A screen behind the cast changes with each segment, which helped to set the scene and capture the musicals’ style. The songs are catchy, funny and clever, with references to shows like Chicago, The Phantom of the Opera, and Into the Woods, and even a shout-out to Jamie Lloyd’s Sunset Boulevard. The Sondheim section was a highlight for me — they captured his style perfectly and handled the complexity of his music which was really impressive.

Unfortunately, there were quite a few sound issues on the night that were pretty distracting — some dialogue got lost under the music, and there was noticeable mic rustling. It made it hard to fully immerse myself in the show.

The cast was fantastic — each captured the essence of their characters so well. With lots of energy, incredible vocals, and great comic timing, they really shone throughout and handled the constant shifts in style impeccably.

For musical theatre die-hards, the show really works, packed with hilarious nods to beloved shows and styles. But if you’re not familiar with the genre, a lot of the references might fly over your head.

Overall, a fun night out!